Paradise Lost
by WylieCoyote
Summary: Jack, Gwen, and Ianto find themselves trapped in a nightmare filled, 1980s hotel. Soon joined by UNIT agent, Carlie Roberts; the team face their greatest fears, but when a horrifying new darkness threatens everything they thought they knew, can they be strong enough to save themselves? Inspired by the Doctor Who episode: "God Complex".
1. Part 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Torchwood or Doctor Who **

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_"No hero is immortal till he dies."_

-W.H. Auden

**~ Part 1 ~ **

Out of all the strange things Jack Harkness had come across in his lifetime, this was the strangest. He, Ianto, and Gwen were searching for the source of a particularly high rift spike, when suddenly they stumbled into the lobby of a hotel. Whenever one of the Torchwood operatives attempted to leave, they would end up entering through the same door they exited from. After a few more minutes of the pointless endeavor, Gwen walked away to try calling Rhys, which Jack seemed to want to protest over but kept his mouth shut.

"What is this place, Jack?" Ianto inquired, taking in the 1980s exterior.

Jack shook his head. "I don't know," he admitted. "Never seen anything like this before ..." Jack walked up to the front desk, rung the bell, and waited for a beat. "Doesn't look like anyone's home." He turned to face Ianto again and indicated the wall clock hanging over the staircase. "Maybe we're in a time loop."

Ianto shuddered, remembering Jack's story of being trapped in a so called 'time loop' with John Hart for five years. "Bloody hell, we better not be," Ianto grumbled.

"If I sent a distress signal now the soonest it would reach the outside world would be in two years," Jack said.

"Brilliant..." Ianto mumbled.

"Ah, it wouldn't be too bad," Jack dismissed, smirk forming on his lips and voice dropping to pure seduction, "I'm sure we could find a way to pass the time."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "You're neglecting the fact that we still need sustenance and don't you think Gwen will get a tad bored if all she has entertaining her is the sound of us shagging in the next room."

"Well..."

"Oh god."

"Hey, you set yourself up for that one. Fine. No orgy. But maybe we could have her-"

Jack was cut off by a high pitched scream. The two men exchanged a glance. They ran down the hall, towards the source of the cry. Gwen was standing in the doorway of one of the rooms at the end.

"Gwen!" Jack called. "Are you okay?"

Gwen glanced over her shoulder and nodded. "Startled me is all," she said, laughing nervously. She crouched down to pick up her mobile phone then stoop up warily. Gwen motioned towards the room and stepped back so Jack and Ianto could see.

Standing in the middle of the room was a skeleton. It had no eyes, but it watched them just the same, gruesome face fixed in a wicked Cheshire Cat grin. Jack tilted his head slightly. The skeleton tilted it's head. Jack reached forward and slowly pulled the door shut.

"What's a skeleton doing in a hotel room?" Gwen questioned.

Jack shrugged. "Check some of the other rooms. We might find our answers behind one of them."

Gwen and Ianto nodded, both dispersing in different directions. The first door Jack opened revealed a room filled with snakes, hissing and slithering up the walls and over the furniture. The second door Jack opened brought nothing but darkness.

By the eighteenth door which showed Jack a room full of teenage boys clad in American football uniforms, he was bored. Jack slammed the door a little harder than he intended to. He stood in the ominously quiet hallway, glancing up and down the corridor as if checking for traffic. Jack moved to contact Gwen and Ianto to check on their progress, when something caught his eye.

A few doors down, across the hall there was a room with a number that didn't fit in the range he was searching through. Jack lowered his hand and cautiously approached the door. Above it was a label that read:

_51_

51 could mean anything. But to Captain Jack Harkness, it was beyond significance. It was home. He stiffened and something in the back of his mind protested his next movement. Jack ignored his inward conflict and was about to grab the knob of the door handle when...

"Don't touch it!" A young, female, American voice ordered firmly.

Jack whipped around and saw a young woman with light brown hair and confident hazel eyes, striding over to him. "Carlie Roberts?" Jack gaped with disbelief.

"In the flesh," Carlie said.

"Did you just get here?" Jack asked.

Carlie shook her head. "Been here for two days now." She suddenly threw her arms around Jack. "It's good to see you, solider boy. God, I thought I would be alone in this place forever. I'm the only survivor, Jack, the rest of my team is gone."

Jack pulled away with a frown. "What happened?"

"This 'hotel'," Carlie explained, "contains the fears of people."

For the first time, Jack noticed that Carlie's eyes were red and that she was shaking. He took her face in his hands, forcing her to meet his gaze. "It's going to be okay," he assured. "What happened?"

Carlie took a deep breath and let it out. "UNIT sent me and eight others to investigate some strange activity on the Canadian border. One moment we were in the basement of some old lady's cottage, the next we're in a hotel. We all broke off into groups so we could explore a little, try to figure out what the hell was going on..." she shook her head, eyes glazing over with a haunted expression. "The first to go was Andrew Henderson. He was twenty-five and this was his second week of working at UNIT. Andrew was a good guy, always willing and able and he had _so_ much potential. I found him standing in one of the doorways, completely shell-shocked. The entire room was drenched in blood. I almost threw up, but then I saw his face. His skin was pale and..." Carlie bit her bottom lip. "And we all met back up after that, none of us having a clue what was going on. That was when Andrew got really nervous. Twitchy. He began to grow delusional and broke down." Carlie flickered her gaze as if expecting something to jump out at her. "He started repeating the phrase: 'Praise him'. Over and over."

"'Praise him'?" Jack echoed.

Carlie nodded. "Not soon after, a beast came. It looked like a Minotaur. Of course we all hid on instinct. Jack, it devoured Andrew."

"The same thing happened to the rest of your colleagues," Jack concluded.

"All of them in forty-eight hours."

"I'm sorry," said Jack, genuinely.

"Thanks." Carlie whipped her eyes dry with the back of her hand. "Ianto said Torchwood was in my blood" - she laughed to herself ironically- "here I am, falling apart again. I'm hardly Torchwood material."

Jack pulled Carlie to him and kissed the top of her head as a gesture of comfort. "You deserve to break down," he said softly. "Are you doing okay?"

"Just finished the water bottle and granola bar I brought with me so I'm doing well despite the circumstances," Carlie sighed, then quiet suddenly, she lifted her head. "Wait. Ianto and Gwen _are_ here aren't they." She didn't wait for Jack to answer and demanded, "Where are they, Jack?"

"Checking the rooms of the hotel," Jack said.

Carlie pushed out of Jack's arms, throwing her hands up. "I really thought you were smarter, Jack."

The immortal tried not to smirk, amused over how quickly Carlie's attitude shifted. "I'm sorry?" This apology coming out sarcastic instead of empathetic like before.

"I've got a theory," Carlie stated. "I mentioned before how this hotel has fears. Well, I think it has the fear of _every _person. Everyone has a room. When they open their door, they become terrified and lose all hope."

Jack began to catch on. "They begin to want death."  
"Exactly. I guess that's why Torchwood here though, right. Dealing with everything from the Twilight Zone to Starfleet."

"Yeah, I suppose we..." Jack trailed off, recalling how compelled he felt to open the door to room 51. "Shit. The rooms. You're right..."

"Gwen and Ianto," they gasped in unison.

Jack and Carlie began walking up the hallway they were in. "Ianto? Gwen?" Jack said into his wi-com.

A few seconds later, Gwen's voice came through, "Yeah, Jack?"

"Stay away from the rooms. Go back to the lobby and wait for me," Jack instructed.

"Why? Did something happen-"

"I'll explain everything," Jack pressed, "just go and wait."

Jack inwardly pleaded that Gwen wouldn't argue with him over this. Eventually, she said, "Okay. See you soon, Jack."

Carlie gripped Jack's arm as they continued to walk. "Ianto," she reminded him. Jack nodded and tried to contact the young Welshman. When there was yet to be an answer, both Jack and Carlie were distraught.

"We hardly know anything about this threat," Carlie said, half to herself. "Where is he?"

"I'm not sure. But I promise you, no one else is dying. Not on my watch." Jack and Carlie continued to make their way down the twisting halls.

Carlie began to grow fidgety. "You don't think he..." she trailed off at the sound of low growling. Carlie exchanged a glance with Jack, the panic returning to her face. Jack reached for her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze.

"I have an idea." He opened his wrist strap. "This'll create a map for us to follow," Jack explained. "We can find Ianto with it." A hologram flickered up, plotting out a map. Two blinking red dots appeared where Jack and Carlie stood, another dot was heading towards a large square at the far right corner; representing the lobby.

The fourth dot was just around the corner.

Sure enough, there was Ianto. He was standing blank-faced and a chillingly familiar battle cry played from the open door. Jack cursed under his breath and ran over to Ianto, pushing him out of the way. "Carlie, get the door," Jack said over his shoulder. "Carlie!?"

"No..." she whispered. Not to Jack, but to the nightmare in front of her.

The giant man made of steel bore holes into Carlie with soulless gouges where eyes should be. It took a slow, deliberate step forward. "DELETE!" It yelled and in the same moment, Jack kicked the door shut.

"You two okay?" He asked.

Ianto, who was now standing next to Jack nodded reluctantly. Carlie took a moment to gather her composure before replying, "I'm fine."

"Good," Jack said, "let's go meet Gwen in the lobby so we talk this out, yeah?"

"Okay," Carlie sighed. "That, uh...sounds good. Allons-y as the French say."

While they continued back to the lobby at at vigilant pace, Ianto and Carlie made small talk, Jack lost in thought over how this 'hotel' functioned.

"Took you long enough," Gwen huffed upon seeing them. She caught sight of Carlie. "Carlie? When did you get here? Oh, have you brought help?"

"Nope, sorry," Carlie said, "I'm in the same boat as you guys." Carlie gave Ianto and Gwen a shortened version of what she told Jack.

Gwen shuddered. "Only in Torchwood.

"Like a Venus Fly-Trap," Ianto pointed out. "Lures it's victims by drawing them in with something that appears harmless but deadly on the inside."

"Exactly," Carlie agreed.

"Christ, Jack," Gwen quipped, arms crossing over her chest, "here you are telling us to go opening these death traps, didn't you consider the risks?"

Jack glared at her. "Despite what you may think, Mrs. Cooper I don't actually know everything."

"Wasn't saying you did, Jack," Gwen said evenly.

Awkward tension hung in the air until Carlie suggested, "We could kill the beast. No wolf to feed means the sheep go free, right?"

"Nothing's ever that simple," Jack said.

"Unfortunately," Ianto quipped, "it would make our jobs a whole lot easier."

Jack noticed that Ianto wasn't shaken by seeing the Cyberman. "Ianto, can I talk to you for a second?" Ianto glanced at Gwen and Carlie who shrugged. The Welshman walked over to Jack. "You don't have to pretend like what you saw didn't scare you."

"It didn't," Ianto said, "Well...it didn't exactly bring the cheeriest of thoughts to mind, but I'm not afraid of them anymore. I faced that fear long ago, Jack."

Jack looked unconvinced. "Alright."

"We'd best keep an eye on Carlie though. She's confident and brave. But she...panics."

"I know."

"You didn't think so back on our little expedition to Mariana's Trench," Ianto pointed out, voice ever calm.

"What is it with you and Gwen?" Jack grumbled. "Its like you mark specific dates on the calendar that say: 'Make Jack Harkness' Life a Lot Harder'."

"You've improved on your sarcasm. You're becoming very fluent."

"Cheeky bastard."

"What would you do without me."

Jack chuckled. "Probably fall apart. You've seen me go without that incredible coffee of yours, not a pretty sight."

"Is Captain Harkness actually admitting he isn't the most gorgeous man in the world 24/7," Ianto tutted.

"I'm not that narcissistic, am I?"

"On a good day I suppose you're not that bad."

Jack smiled, feeling a sudden surge of affection for the younger man. He touched Ianto's cheek, his breath ghosting over Ianto's lips when Carlie cleared her throat.

"Sorry to interrupt, boys," Gwen added.

Carlie said, "Gwen and I were poking around the front desk while you two were otherwise occupied."

Gwen held out a pad of paper. "We found this in one of the drawers."

Jack took the paper. He read it out loud: "Hello. Now, don't panic because you're perfectly safe if you stay where you are. My friends and I dealt with the beast being held here, but my guess is it another will eventually take it's place. Terrible system they have in this galaxy, I should really have a word with them about it because really, what were they thinking costing so many lives- sorry. This is a holding cell. The guards keep their prisoners fed by luring the Minotaur's food supply to it. Stay away from the doors because if you find yours, what you see stays with you. Start praising and you lose faith in what you believe in. Your faith is what the Minotaur eats. It absorbs your faith and after that there's nothing that can be done for you, I am sorry. Be strong. Humans are strong so I'm not worried. Good luck."

"Do you know who left it?" Ianto asked.

"Nope," Carlie said, "Whoever it was didn't leave their name. But...flip the page."

Jack did and a wide grin stretched across his face.

"What? You know whoever left that, don't you," Gwen interrogated. "Come on, who is it?"

"Someone we can trust," Jack answered enigmatically. "It's settled then. We're going to stay here and wait. The guards will have to check on the Minotaur at some point. That's when we'll make our move."

"So. We just sit here and twiddle our thumbs?" Gwen said.

"Yes."

Gwen sighed. "Well thank god I've got Carlie to keep me company, you to are impossible to be around when you get bored." She giggled to herself. "Oh, Carlie I have to tell you about this one time when-"

Jack coughed meaningfully and Ianto said, "I'd rather you not."

"Oi! If you two are planning on going at it like rabbits, then I should be able to make light conversation with a friend. Don't you think so, Carlie?"

Carlie was non-responsive. She stared at the wall clock, lucid hazel eyes now glazed over and distant.

"Carlie?" Gwen said tentatively. She put a hand on Carlie's shoulder. "Are you alright, Carlie?"

Carlie blinked once. Twice. "Huh?"

Ianto said, "Carlie, you look pale. Do you need to sit down somewhere?"

"What? No. No, I'm good. Thank you," Carlie said, stumbling over her words. "Gwen. How about that story?"

Gwen nodded eagerly, flashing Jack and Ianto one of her infamous gap-toothed grins. "Glad to." She and Carlie went and sat on the stools behind the front desk to talk.

"And she calls us the intolerable ones," Jack sniggered in mock offense.

Ianto frowned. "Who was that note from, Jack?" Jack held the pad of paper in front of Ianto, a quick sketch of the TARDIS on display. "Ah. So we wait. Sounds like a plan."

For Jack, he found out long ago that Gwen and Ianto couldn't be more opposite. Gwen needed to know everything and wouldn't stop until she learned each secret. Ianto knew everything and had a grasp of when enough was enough; to back off of a situation he didn't quite understand. Gwen was ambitious and strong, but would still be sympathetic to the cruelest of serial killers. Ianto was quiet and hid the brightest flames of his personality, but wouldn't hesitate to eliminate someone for their wrongdoings. Only on thing in the shades of their differing personalities was the same. They would both die for the man who lives forever.

"You know, Gwen did have a good idea," Jack said, "what do you say? Let's 'go at it like rabbits'."

"With them right there?" Ianto mused.

"They won't mind," Jack dismissed.

"They won't, won't they?"

"Are we really going to pretend as if Gwen doesn't secretly watch the CCTV footage while we're out hunting weeviles?" Jack took Ianto's hand and pulled him around the corner so they were just out of sight. "Better?" He didn't wait for Ianto's answer and leaned forward, pressing his lips against the younger man's. When Ianto started returning the kiss, Jack smiled and wrapped his arms around the Welshman, bringing him closer. Ianto stroked his fingers over the skin of Jack's neck as the kiss deepened, his tongue probing insistently until Jack's mouth parted. When they paused for air, Jack traced his thumb over Ianto's lips.

"Better," Ianto repeated, somewhat breathlessly.

Jack laughed and nearly kissed him again when there was an unexpected cacophony. They ducked back around the corner and saw Gwen crouch down. Ianto got there first. One of the stools had been knocked over and Carlie sat with her knees pulled up to her chest.

"Carlie," Ianto gasped. He glanced over at Gwen. "What happened?"

Gwen shrugged helplessly. "One moment it's all fun and gossip, the next she's completely spooked."

Ianto knelt so he was at Carlie's eye level. She acknowledged him but her gaze went right through him. "Carlie, talk to me."

"We can't wait forever," Carlie whispered.

"We won't," Ianto assured.

Gwen nodded in agreement. "Just be patient, sweetheart," she said.

Carlie shook her head furiously. "No, no, no...what if Jack's wrong?" She glared at Jack. "What if _you're _wrong. You can't honestly keep your promise, can you?" Her voice was uncharacteristically hard. Seething and bitter. "You said you wouldn't let anyone else die, but..." Carlie bolted to her feet. Jack noticed that her hands were shaking and for the first time noticed her wet, reddened eyes. "...but I am, Jack...I am...I am and that is so..." She smiled brokenly as an eerie laugh escaped her throat. "So...wonderful."

Ianto and Gwen jumped up, alarmed. "Carlie, you don't know what you're saying," Gwen warned.

"Gwen, don't you see?" Carlie giggled, cheeks now streaked with the salty tears. "We'd never make it out anyway. He"- she indicated Jack- "he lies. He lied to me already. But that doesn't matter. Because since we'll die anyway we can just forget everything. Our lives don't matter."

"Don't talk that way," Ianto said, making a move to wrap his arms around her.

Carlie stumbled backwards away from him. "You two trust so blindly," she said pityingly. "Why don't you just let it go...and praise him."

The same, low snarling that Jack and Carlie heard before came again.

"Praise him..." Carlie echoed.

Jack walked over to Carlie and forced her to hold still. "I know you're scared, Carlie. And that's okay. It is. Everyone get's scared."

Carlie narrowed her eyes at him. "Even you, Captain?"

Jack nodded. "Undoubtedly. But you can't give up on me. You _have_ to trust me. Plus, I think Ianto would have my bollocks if I let anything happen to you."

Carlie gasped, breaking the trance and she released a choked sob, falling forward into Jack's arms. "Oh god. What just happened..."

Jack tightened his embrace around her. "You're going to be okay." He looked over at Ianto and Gwen. "I think we'd better find somewhere else to wait."

"That escalated rather quickly," Gwen sighed, plopping down on the beige couch of the common room. "I thought we were going to lose you for a moment there, Carlie."  
Carlie who was sitting on a white, rose-pattern love seat with Ianto confessed, "So did I."

Jack was pacing and reading the note over. Obviously they couldn't survive the entire time on keeping the faith. Being the Doctor, of course he would neglect to write in a way to kill the Minotaur.

Jack began to idly wonder if he'd be safe to open the doors. It wasn't like the Minotaur would be able to kill him. The curiosity got to be too much. "I'll be right back," he informed the rest of his team.

"Where are you going?" Gwen asked.

"The note said to stay in one place and we've already been moving around like a school of fish," Ianto pointed out.

"I'll be back," Jack said, striding out of the common room. He searched for the odd 51 and stopped in front of it. "Okay, Bates Motel. Hit me with your best shot." Jack reached forward and threw the door open.


	2. Part 2

**Sorry that this is late guys; but I kept getting writer's block. I apologize ahead of time for any spelling mistakes. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Torchwood or the Doctor Who episode "God Complex"**

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At first, Jack Harkness didn't know what to think. He took a step forward and closed the door behind him. Jack tilted his chin up slightly, standing to attention. A tiny smirk formed on his lips.

"What else?" Jack laughed, cold and ironic.

The only light in the room, a dimly lit lamp on the bedside table, caught on the glass of the mirror making the glow of the reflection's eyes glint wickedly.

"Looking good as always," Jack said. "So, what've you got for me? Interrogation? Accusations? Hmm? No. Going to recap every mistake I've made, every sin I've committed?" Jack stepped closer. "Nothing?" He shrugged and glanced around.

Jack stalked over to the bedside table and unplugged the lamp. Jack then walked back to stand at attention in front of the mirror. "Alright. You don't want to talk. Fine by me."

The immortal gripped the lamp tightly in his fingers before hurtling it at his reflection. As the mirror shattered, an ardent, blood-curdling scream burst from the reflection's lips; the crashing of glass filling the small space. Jack jumped backwards to avoid being hit by the shards, despite the fact any wound would've healed instantly. Once the discordance died down, Jack brushed nonexistent dirt from the lapels of his coat.

"Sorted," the captain murmured, leaving so quickly that he missed the dark smoke that started to stream from the base of the mirror and over the rigid glass.

The hallways seemed to stretch and weave much more than Jack remembered...and...no how did he just pass room 51 again? Jack shook his head. _Stay focused, _Jack reminded himself. He continued walking. Jack eyed the other room numbers, searching subconsciously for other strange numbers.

"Jack?" It was Gwen.

"Yeah..."

"Where are you?" Gwen questioned.

"Doesn't matter. I'm coming back now."

"It's been forty minutes," she deadpanned.

Jack stopped. "What?"

Gwen sighed, "'I'll be back' my arse. Check your watch or that wrist strap thingy of yours."

Jack glanced at his watch and repeated in utter disbelief, "forty minutes..."

"What's going on, Jack?"

"Wha-? Nothing."

"You're," Gwen sounded amused now, rather than annoyed, "lost aren't you?"

"_Me_," Jack snorted, "_lost_?"

"Well what else would you be doing that's taking so long?"

"I can think a few things." The immortal glanced up and down the never-ending hallways. "Just stay in the common room, yeah?"

A short pause before, "Okay, Jack. But try not to be too much longer, Carlie's getting twitchy again." There was a precipitous, loud, muffled crash from Gwen's end of the wi-com. "Shit," Gwen hissed.

"What happened?"

"The lightbulbs just exploded, we're in the dark but I think we'll be okay-" she was cut off by the sound of a scream, Carlie?, and then the connection went dead.

Jack cursed a slew of both 21st century and intergalactic swears and broke into a run. _Well, _thought Jack, _at least I'm getting some exercise out of all this. _He skidded to a halt when he finally reached the common room and...no one was there. Jack threw his hands up. "Why the hell not," he exclaimed. "I really should've seen this one coming." He walked attentively through the darkened room. Glass crunched beneath his boots and he had to maneuver around dangling ceiling lights. Occasional sparks of electricity crackled from the wires. Where Ianto and Carlie was sitting, rested the PDA. A red dot was blinking wildly on the small screen.

Jack went to pick it up when he heard another scream, this one definitely Gwen, followed by the sound of a slamming door. The American breathed in, then out heavily. He rolled his neck, loosening the muscles before going to find the source of the noise. Jack found himself back in the hallways of rooms. He'd made it only a few feet forward when a fingers wrapped around his wrist and tugged him backwards. Jack whipped around as the door closed, seemingly by itself, with the revolver aimed.

"Whoa, Jack," Gwen said. "It's just me."

"Oh."

"Yes..." Gwen said slowly. She indicated the gun. "Want to put that away now?"

Jack re-holstered the gun. He eyed her. "Well, its good to see you in one piece." Jack took in the fog clouded room. It was impossible to see anything except for what was right in front of him. "Is this your room?" Gwen looked uncomfortable and self-conscious. "Gwen. Are you okay?"

She waved her hand dismissively. "Let's just find Carlie and Ianto."

"If you're sure," Jack said, still unconvinced. "We can talk about it."

"I don't want to talk about it Jack, thank you," Gwen stated, shouldering past him and speeding out the door.

Jack was doubtful, but followed her out anyways. "Ah, so where did they go?"

"I think they went in the opposite direction as I did," Gwen explained. "So they headed for the stairs to the lobby."

Gwen and Jack walked down the stairwell. Gwen slowed down a bit, observing the photographs. Just as if this were a real hotel, employee's of the month were hung up along side various managers. Their broad, white grins beamed at the pair of them from behind the glass. Jack didn't pay the pictures much attention, but Gwen paused at the bottom of the staircase.

"Jack, come and see this," the Welshwoman said.

The last photo had a layer of dust covering the surface and cobwebs hanging in the corners of the frame. But they could make out exactly who it was. "Huh," Jack said. "Haven't seen you in a while. Okay. I'll play your little games, Bilis Manger."

"Maybe its a coincidence? He could've worked here. As a guard I mean."

Jack shook his head. "No." he trailed off and bolted back up the stairs, ignoring Gwen's calls. Gwen's voice was fading behind him. An intense presentiment was settling in the pit of Jack's stomach but he ignored it. He stood once more at attention in front of room 51. This time he didn't hesitate. Jack wrapped his fingers around the door knob, throwing it open for the second time. The immortal froze.

Where the remains of a mirror once stood in baleful defiance, was nothing but an empty space. The hotel room looked as if no one had touched it. Completely normal. Except that it wasn't. Nothing in Torchwood was ever normal.

The captain crossed his arms over his chest and stood in the doorway. "Well then." He half expected Gwen to appear next to him again and demand 'what the hell that was about'...but she was nowhere. Actually... "Gwen?" Jack called. Odd. She'd been right behind him. Hadn't she?

Suddenly, the same low growling from before erupted from somewhere close by. Beneath the savage roars, was a choked back shout. _Wait a second_, Jack thought. He turned around carefully and was met with the image of the Minotaur with it's gristly hands wrapped around Ianto's throat, pinning him against the wall. Carlie sat on the opposite side of the hallway, a blank expression on her face, head quirked at an unusual angle. Jack aimed and fired the revolver. The bullet bounced off of an invisible shield, flying back and nearly hitting the immortal.

_Doc didn't mention anything like this, _Jack thought ruefully. He stormed forward and hammered his fists on the force field. If he couldn't reach the Minotaur, he could at least try distracting it, right? The beast was ignoring him though. Ianto, however, glanced over to Jack, eyes widening a little and he seemed a bit irritated. Ianto kneed the Minotaur and it fell back groaning, but recovered quickly, lurching forward and shoving the Welshman into the wall again. A loud, 'thud!', and Ianto was knocked unconscious.

Jack swallowed hard and flickered his gaze to Carlie. "Carlie, run!"

She didn't hear him.

"CARLIE!"

Carlie looked up and frowned. Not at the Minotaur that loomed over her. "You're not 'him'," she stated bluntly, sounding like her old self for a brief second.

This surprised the Minotaur because it staggered backwards. As it moved, Jack saw what Carlie was referring to. A cloud of ebony smoke hovered behind the Minotaur. It was darker than the Void and in the silhouette of a man. The Minotaur's ears twitched and it noticed the gruesome form. It growled, but the dissonant snarling reverted to a pained cry as the shadow lunged forward and slammed against the Minotaur, full force. Splatters of crimson splashed against either side of the hallway and the entire hotel was drowned in a chilling silence.

Jack barely had time to react before the ghostly creature advanced on Carlie who didn't have a chance to scream before it descended on her. The captain beat his hands against the shield as Carlie was lost in a mass of black fog. When the shadow retreated all the only thing of Carlie Roberts that remained, was a pile of ash.

The immortal pushed against the invisible force field and stumbled when he realized there was nothing blocking him anymore. Jack crouched down and ran his fingers through the thin layers of dust. It was coarse like beach sand and crumbled under Jack's touch.

Ianto was coming to now. Jack glanced over his shoulder. Ianto was rubbing the back of his head. "Jack...what...what happened?" The blood of the Minotaur stained his suit and dripped down the side of his face. Ianto noticed and rolled his eyes. "This is going to take forever to get out."

"Ianto, I-" Jack could taste bile. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, some help you were," Ianto quipped. Jack shook his head and moved over. "What's that?"

"I'm so sorry," Jack persisted, unable to look Ianto in the eyes.

Ianto blinked. "I don't understand, what is that? Where's Carlie?"

Jack glanced at Ianto, then back to the ash pile. "She's gone." He stared off somewhere, head throbbing. "I couldn't save her."

There was a long pause. "No," Ianto said. "It's not..." The Welshman reached forward, fingers hovering over the dust. He stood abruptly. "Carlie..."

"Jack! Ianto!" Gwen exclaimed, running over to them. "Is that..._blood _on the walls? Where's Carlie?"

Jack glanced at Ianto, but the younger man was still staring at the only thing left of his friend. "She's dead," Ianto answered, voice chillingly calm.

"Oh my god," Gwen gasped. "How? Did the Minotaur-"

"It's dead too," Jack said meaningfully.

Gwen frowned at him and weaved past Jack, pulling Ianto into a tight, slightly one-sided hug. Jack, stood a few awkward feet away from them. "Sweetheart, what happened?" Gwen was using that same ton she used when talked to the family of those who had passed to an attack from an alien who'd come through the rift. Before she came to Torchwood, no one took it upon themselves to tell the parents, or friends, or spouses anything. They just let them believe their loved one had vanished and didn't really think much of it. It wasn't an easy job and Jack admired Gwen for it.

"I was knocked out," Ianto confessed. "But from what I can remember, the Minotaur found Carlie and I...tried protecting her. I was holding it off, but it wasn't doing much good. Then I saw Jack."

"Jack," Gwen said, she flickered her gaze over to the immortal who opened his mouth to explain but Ianto spoke first,

"He was just standing there."

Jack shook his head and argued, "There was some kind of force field. I tried breaking through." Neither of the Torchwood operatives were convinced. "What killed Carlie was some kind of shadow creature," Jack explained, trying to keep the authority in his voice. He was thwart over the fact that he knew even less than he did before. Jack'd barely begun to understand the Minotaur. Now if he were the Doctor this would be _thrilling_. A new alien species! A new adventure to explore, a new mystery to solve alongside shinning companions. But Captain Jack Harkness was not a timelord from Gallifrey with a sense of wonder for everything. He was a former con-man from the 51st century and knew all too well that it takes just the blink of an eye for something once beautiful to become ugly.

The captain continued, "It's much more dangerous than the Minotaur. I don't know if it's another prisoner whose been released here, or if it's another one of Bilis Manger's tricks"- to Ianto he added, "I'll explain later. But we weren't warned about this so we don't know how to deal with it. I'm going to scan the area with my Vortex Manipulator and try to find of there are any safer places here."

Gwen and Ianto weren't saying anything. Gwen bore a disappointed, obscurely disgusted expression while Ianto...well, Jack couldn't tell what Ianto was thinking at that was worse than any disapproval from Gwen Cooper.

"Okay, Jack," Gwen finally sighed. She tugged gently at Ianto's hand. "Come on, Ianto. We'll get you cleaned up, yeah?"

Ianto stared at the ash with his tear-reddened eyes a heartbeat longer before squeezing Gwen's hand back. He nodded at her and they both walked past Jack.

_I failed her, _Jack thought, _but I Gwen and Ianto are still here. I need to keep them safe. _

The Torchwood operative's had spent some time searching for a restroom and when they found one, Jack attempted to go in with them, but thought better when Gwen shot him a warning glare. Jack leaned against the wall, trying to catch bits of their conversation but any fragments were to muffled by the door to hear properly.

Once they finished, Jack pushed away from the wall and strolled around, focusing on his Vortex Manipulator, fiddling with the controls. There didn't appear to be any way out.

_Great..._

As the Torchwood team walked back to the lobby, Jack wondered what the whole force field situation was about. He'd felt it there. But Ianto claimed Jack was just standing there. Maybe it was Bilis trying to distract Jack from the real problem at hand. He'd been known to play mind games. What could the strange old man possibly want this time?

"I don't know what to say to you, Jack," Gwen said, suddenly next to him. "Ianto wants some time alone." She indicated the Welshman who was pottering about at the front desk.

"Carlie was a great woman," Jack sighed. "She was beautiful and so smart and I wish I got to know her better. I let her down and Ianto will never forgive me. There. That what you wanted to hear?" She glared at him. " Gwen...I promise you I did everything I could to try saving her. There was something blocking my way."

"Honestly, Jack, I'm not sure what to believe," Gwen stated bluntly. "You said the end was where we'd start from. What kind of a start is this?"

Jack was startled by her iciness, the distrust was being practically spat at him. And it hit Jack then that it vexed him to no end. What right did _she _have to judge _him. _This wasn't the first occasion in which Gwen had to be all high and mighty. Sure she was a big part of Torchwood with her bleeding heart, but she had something else coming if she though it was her place to look down on Jack Harkness.

"I _am_ trying," Jack snapped through a clenched jaw.

"Well, obviously not hard enough," Gwen countered.

Gwen challenged Jack before, but for some odd reason this was really getting to the immortal. He felt the anger sky rocketing and any admiration he recently had for Gwen fell away. "You're a real piece of work, you know that?"

"It's what I strive to be."

"Maybe you should stick to what you do best," Jack sniggered. "Whining about the tiniest flaws in your perfect life and sleeping around."

"Oh, you're one to bloody talk," Gwen pointed out. "What is everything, a joke to you, Jack? Everything has to be about sex, sex, sex!"

Something in the back of Jack's mind was nagging at him, but he ignored it. "Because you're such a better person. The world actually doesn't revolve around, Gwen Cooper!"

Gwen glared at Jack, wide green eyes filled with hurt and loathing. "I hate you," she said, a furious sob barely choked down.

"Why," Jack demanded, "because I'm telling you the truth, because you're not wrapped around my finger?"

Gwen closed her eyes. "I need a moment," she murmured and walked away.

Jack crossed his arms over his chest. He didn't bother stopping her. Jack noticed Ianto who was arranging the various items on the desktop, head down. He'd probably heard every word of Jack and Gwen's argument. Jack sighed and strode over to Ianto.

"You two were having a row," Ianto stated.

"Yeah."

"Sounded like it was getting quite heated."

"She'll get over it."

Ianto looked up. "Are you feeling alright, Jack?"

Jack frowned. "Me? What about you?"

"I'll be fine," Ianto said slowly. "I've seen you and Gwen have disagreements before, but...Well I don't know, that seemed kind of intense."

"Hmph. So?"

Ianto shrugged. "I have a theory..."

Gwen screamed.

The two men jumped into action on instinct. They didn't have to go very far, though. Jack skidded to a halt, throwing his arm out to stop Ianto and nailing him in the chest. He thought about apologizing but the words were lost when he saw what was in the center of the hallway.

* * *

**Ugh, that was terrible Xp **


End file.
